Topnotch music and dancing generated an engaging and comedic performance of “Music Man,” the second of four musicals in the 18th Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre series.
The show opened Wednesday in Shenandoah University’s Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre.
Jack Rowles, a returning actor to the summer theater series and a Shenandoah Conservatory graduate, portrays lead character Harold Hill with flair and ease.
Hill is a dubious salesman who hops off the train at River City, Iowa, with the intention of bilking money from residents.
His scheme involves posing as a music professor who wants to start a boy’s band. He persuades residents to give him money for instruments and uniforms after he convinces them the city’s children are falling prey to boredom and mischief.
Rowles injects charm and charisma into the role of this conniving character, particularly in scenes where he wins the faith of the residents and eventually the heart of librarian Marian Paroo.
Portrayed by Amanda Johnson, Marian rebuffs Harold’s advances at first. A piano teacher on the side, she doubts he is a music professor or that he knows much, if anything, about leading a band.
Eventually Marian falls in love with Hill after he pulls her backward, self-conscious little brother, Winthrop Paroo (portrayed by Andrew Leach) out of his shell by handing him a brand-new coronet and encouraging him to play it.
Johnson’s strong, billowy vocals surge with emotion during solos “Goodnight, My Someone,” “My White Knight,” and “Will I ever Tell You.”
She also sings duets with Rowles and a quartet of River City resdients, who appear in scenes throughout the musical, showcasing their sweet-sounding belnd of four-part harmony.
The cast’s dancing is lively and laced with humor, such as the library scene where teen-agers peek from behind their books, pretending to read as they watch Hill trying to woo a disinterested Marian.
Some of the teen-age boys take an acrobatic jump off the table during the dance routine, until one of them loses his balance, creating one of the many comedic moments of the musical.
Scenery changes are swift and unnoticeable, and the city’s building and stores facades are simple and effective.
Marian’s quaint clapboard house, where she lives with Winthrop and her Irish mother, Mrs. Paroo, ismore detailed, including a screen door and a porch where Johnson sings several of her solos.
A dimensional backdrop replete with stars and a half moon effectively project the illusion that nightime has fallen over the sleepy Midwestern city.
Shows run through July 8. Show times are 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, 7 p.m. Sunday and 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Thursday. Ticket prices are $21 for Friday and Saturday evening shows and $20 for weekdays, Sunday evenings, and matinees.
For more information, call 665-4569.